All it took was one play. One kick. One loss.
It took one blocked field goal to send a season heaped in anticipation into the depths of irrelevancy.
The ASU football team has not, to this point, recovered from their overtime loss to UNLV on Sept. 13, a game that was supposed to be a mere tune-up for a showdown with SEC-powerhouse Georgia.
Coach Dennis Erickson was “sickened” by the defeat, and he probably isn’t feeling much better now in the midst of a four-game losing streak.
The mass suffering of the Pac-10 early in the year (I think this is where I insert a reference about “fearing the turtle”) still left hope that ASU could stay among the conference’s leaders, despite a grueling schedule in the month ahead.
Put simply, the Sun Devils haven’t met the challenge.
Still suffering from the shock of a heart-wrenching loss, the Sun Devils were unable to match the talent of the Bulldogs.
Losses to Cal and USC (you guys know how that feels) followed and put ASU’s season on the brink.
Saturday’s matchup will likely determine whether the Sun Devils spend their winter break preparing for a bowl game, or just plain bowling.
Luckily, an important ASU character will be on the Sun Devil Stadium stage this weekend.
Clichés in sports are thrown around with monotonous regularity. Calling a player a “warrior” is a term as tired as any other.
Sun Devil senior quarterback Rudy Carpenter, though, is as deserving as anyone of the moniker.
After getting knocked around like a rag doll against Cal, Carpenter spent the week before the USC game in pain and in a walking boot.
The general consensus before the game was that Carpenter was about as likely to play as Oregon was to wear less than five different uniforms this season (shameless, I know).
Carpenter, who was termed “very doubtful” earlier in the week, ignored it all and made his 37th consecutive start.
Despite his antics and emotions, Carpenter has proved his toughness and gives the Sun Devils a chance when he is under center.
The Sun Devils will need Rudy’s best, as well as a strong defensive effort to restrain the two-headed monster of Blount-Johnson at running back.
Sitting at the midpoint of the season, the Sun Devils say they still have a lot to play for. They are also motivated by three consecutive losses to the Ducks.
Whatever the inspiration, the Sun Devils will be ready for a loud, intense game in the House of Heat.
If they’re not, a season on the brink will quickly become one diving over the edge.
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